High-resolution ISAR imaging of maneuvering targets by means of the range instantaneous Doppler technique: modeling and performance analysis

Very high resolution inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR) imaging of maneuvering targets is a complicated task. In fact, the conventional range Doppler (RD) ISAR technique does not work properly when target motions generate terms higher than the first order in the phase of the received signal relative to each scatterer. This effect typically happens when at least one of these situations occur: (1) very high resolution images are required; (2) the target maneuvers; and (3) the target undergoes significant angular motions (roll, pitch, and yaw). A novel ISAR technique, named range instantaneous Doppler (RID), has been proposed for the reconstruction of very high resolution images of maneuvering targets. In this paper, we analytically show that the RID technique works properly when high-resolution ISAR images are required of maneuvering and/or rolling, pitching, and yawing targets; we also quantify the performance improvement of the RID technique with respect to the RD technique. The problem is tackled from an analytical point of view. First, we define a new model of the ISAR received signal that is valid for maneuvering targets, then we derive and compare the analytical expression of the point spread function (PSF) for the two techniques. Furthermore, we perform a statistical analysis to evaluate the improvement of the RID technique versus the RD technique in terms of spatial resolution. Finally, we prove the effectiveness of the RID technique by simulating the imaging process for two different targets: (1) a ship that undergoes roll, pitch and yaw motions and (2) a fast maneuvering airplane.